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Steps to Jesus
John, the disciple of Jesus, told us why Christ healed people. He
wrote, “These have been written in order that you may believe that
Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through your faith in
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him you may have life.”
John 20:31
.
Read the Bible stories about Jesus healing the sick. From them
you can learn something of how to believe in Him for the forgiveness
of sins. Turn to the story of the sick man at the pool of Bethesda.
The poor man was helpless. He had not walked for 38 years. Yet
Jesus said to him, “Get up, pick up your bed, and go home!”
The sick man did not say, “Lord, if You make me well, I will
obey Your word.” No, he believed Christ’s word. He believed he
was made well, and that very moment he tried to walk. He
chose
to
walk. And he did walk. He acted on the word of Christ, and God
gave the power. The man was healed.
Now look at yourself. You are a sinner. You can do nothing to
take away your past sins. You cannot change your heart or make
yourself holy. But God promises to do all this for you through Christ.
Believe
that promise. Confess your sins and give yourself to God.
Choose
to serve Him. God will surely keep His promise to you if
you do this. When you believe, God acts. You will be made clean
and whole, just as Christ gave the sick man power to walk when he
believed that he was healed. It
is
so if you believe it.
Do not wait to
feel
that you are made whole. Say, “I believe it.
It
is
so, not because I feel it, but because God has promised.”
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Jesus said, “When you pray and ask for something, believe that
you have received it, and you will be given whatever you ask for.”
Mark 11:24
. There is something important to remember in this
promise. You must pray for those things that God wants you to have.
God wants to free you from sin and make you His child. He wants
to give you power to live a holy life.
You may pray for these blessings and believe that you receive
them. Then you may thank God that you
have
received them. You
may go to Jesus and be made clean and stand before God’s law
without shame or sadness. “There is no condemnation now for those
who live in union with Christ Jesus.”
Romans 8:1
.
When you belong to Christ, you are not your own, for you are
bought with a price. “God paid a ransom to save you..., and the
ransom he paid was not mere gold or silver.... But he paid for you